{"id":60,"date":"2025-06-27T20:48:10","date_gmt":"2025-06-27T20:48:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/?p=60"},"modified":"2025-07-16T00:44:35","modified_gmt":"2025-07-16T00:44:35","slug":"part-i-personal-reflection-on-photographic-techniques","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/?p=60","title":{"rendered":"Personal Reflection on Photographic Techniques"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Reading through \u201cBecoming a Better Photographer<\/a>\u201d and watching the video on visual literacy<\/a> gave me a better understanding of photography beyond just taking a snapshot. One idea that stood out was that \u201cthere are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs,\u201d<\/em> as Ansel Adams said. I used to take pictures quickly without thinking too much about framing or depth, but after learning about techniques like creating contrast, adding a foreground to give depth, and changing my perspective by shooting from unusual angles, I started to realize photos can tell richer stories if I\u2019m more… ‘intentional’ with them. For example, I might take a photo of my guitar leaning on my desk. If I apply the contrast tip by focusing on the shine of its strings against the dark wood floor or if I use a low-angle shot from the base of the guitar looking up its neck, the image feels stronger. It becomes less of a quick memory and more of a ‘captured feeling’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The video on visual literacy added to this by explaining that images are a language just like words. I never really thought of it that way. Even though we\u2019re surrounded by images everywhere, no one really taught and trained me how to read them deeply. The \u201cWhere\u2019s Waldo\u201d example showed that our eyes search for a focal point without us realizing. That made me think about how when I take photos, I shouldn\u2019t just capture what\u2019s there but really try to guide the viewer\u2019s eyes to what I want them to notice, like inviting someone into how I<\/strong> see the world, rather than just handing them a snapshot and letting them to figure out themselves. I think that\u2019s something I want to get better at, making my photos feel more intentional and less like random snapshots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, reading about Dorothea Lange\u2019s Migrant Mother photo<\/a> taught me something important. She almost didn\u2019t take that picture, but stopping for that moment captured not just a person but an entire era\u2019s struggle. I liked how she approached Thompson with respect and empathy rather than seeing her as just a subject. That makes me think about my own photos. Even if I\u2019m just taking pictures of classmates, my guitar, or small things around the house, there\u2019s always a story if I look for it patiently. Though… I know patience is something I struggle with. I usually want to take the photo quickly and move on, but maybe slowing down and really observing will make my photos feel more honest. That\u2019s something I want to practice more, ‘seeing’ rather than just looking.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reading through \u201cBecoming a Better Photographer\u201d and watching the video on visual literacy gave me a better understanding of photography beyond just taking a snapshot. One idea that stood out was that \u201cthere are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs,\u201d as Ansel Adams said. I used to take pictures quickly without […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[9],"class_list":["post-60","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-intro-visual","tag-ds106"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=60"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":171,"href":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60\/revisions\/171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=60"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=60"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/typingtomyself.ericisinschool.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=60"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}